I'm planning to buy some speakers for my den. 2 bookshelves.... no room for a sub.
I have been looking at used paradigm 10,20,40 on ebay. I already have an axiom HT system and thought i should try something else for this room plus i really like the looks of the paradigm speakers.
... but still the value conscious part of me is considering the M3. Are there good threads you guys can point me to comparing M3 to some of the paradigm speakers listed?
Also as far as AMP goes. I am considering the monoprice tube amp. I would love to hear opinions on this as well.
Eventually I may want to use Sonos through out my house so I am also considering the ZP120 to drive the speakers, but I may want to hold off on sonos for a while since it seems they may be due for a big upgrade. Recent articles on sonos indicate they will be getting into voice controlled devices.
Whatever speakers you choose, ensure they don't misbehave on the low end.
I picked up a Monoprice tube amp and a pair of Axiom M3V(2 or 3) as a housewarming gift for a friend. I set it up in my conference room to check it out with a Nakamichi CDP. Sound quality was silly good. Excellent. I don't know about the Paradigms, but the Axiom M3s are a perfect pairing with a tube amp.
Don't torment yourself about whether or not you should pull the trigger. Get the M3s and the Monoprice tube amp. You'll love them.
Can anyone recommend stands for the m3 in the below $100 for the pair price range? I feel funny spending more on stands than the amp.
Try Craigslist and pick up a pair for $10-30.
Or, try Amazon.com. Get something sturdy, wide base, wide top plate and not too tall.
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41YXqLw8lwL._AC_UL320_SR320,320_.jpg
Here you go:
Nice Sanus stands 16"-24" less than $40.
Don't feel funny, Just do it already.
Just made an offer on some barely used M3s v4 in cherry. I will be ordering the sanus stands next. Thanks for the push. =)
Great news Listener. Expect a lot of joy from that system.
Enjoy listening to odd harmonic distortion.
That's a good one!
Monoprice says their 'tube' amp uses a class A/B amplification with a tube preamp stage. This is a pretty good combination.
I have an Odyssey Khartago solid state amp and the Odyssey Candella tube preamp. Sounds pretty darn good. Of course, for a total of over $2,500 it should sound great and rub my leg.
I spoke with Klaus Bunge (Odyssey guy) and he said you have to have tubes in the signal path to get good sound. I agree. The only problem with the Odyssey set up is, not enough tubes, just 2 x 12au7s.
I have had the pleasure of listening to the monoprice 'tube' amp coupled with a pair of M3s. This rig sounds terrific! I had one of my golden eared audio society friends over to get his take. After all, a system with a $150 amp and a pair of used M3s, shouldn't sound this good. He agreed. Sounds great.
When I told him that the amp cost $150, he was stunned. Based on the sound quality, he guessed it cost $700-1,000.
$150. Go get one!
Listener, you're going to love it!
I take back what I said about harmonic distortion. I re-read this post and see that it is a tube pre-amp with a solid state power amp.
Ah, that's even funnier! Let a thousand flowers bloom. There's room in this world for very good sounding solid state amps and beautiful sounding tube amps.
Be careful Mojo. You might just start a conversation and wake this place up.
So the offer i made was refused.... that wasn't so bad.. the bad thing was it gave me time to think.
I ended up ordering the M3s from the outlet today. In addition i ordered the peachtree 65se dac\amp and the peachtree d5 speakers. I will audition both over the next few weeks and then decide which ones to keep. Should be a fun time.
I have been listening to both sets of speakers for the past few days. Unfortunately one of the Axioms came damaged (cosmetically only).
The axiom speakers are a little louder so when trying to compare them i have to take the time to adjust each pair of speakers with an SPL meter. To my untrained ears there is not a night and day difference between peachtree and axiom.
Over the next 2 weeks i hope to have a clear winner, but as of right now the only thing i really see is the difference in bass and highs. The axiom bass is a little louder, but not as tight. The Highs are also a little ... for a lack of a better word... higher.... although this makes me want to turn the volume down a bit when listening to them. Both sound similarly good to me and I would be happy with either.
I'd be very curious to know if either speaker bottoms out on loud, low (sub-) bass.
I tried a low frequency tests which starts at 10 Hz and to my surprise the peachtree was louder at the very low frequencies. Neither bottomed out, but I did not turn the amp all the way up during the test.
just tried the peachtree. Turned the volume all the way up. It did not bottom out at 10 hz.
Ola Listener
10hz? The Peachtree D5 is rated 50Hz-20KHz, though the specs do not state whether that is +-3db or 10db.
If you are getting response in the 10Hz range, it is not originating from the speakers.
From Peachtree's site:
Woofer: 5" long excursion
Tweeter: 1" soft dome
Power Requirement: 40-150 watts
Frequency Response: 50Hz-20kHz
Sensitivity: 85dB
Impedance: 6 Ohms
Video Shielded: Yes
Dimensions: 11 x 7.1 x 10.4 (HxWxD in inches)
Weight: 15.8 lbs
Perhaps I am doing something wrong.
This is what i used as a test. If I'm not doing something right perhaps you can recommend the appropriate test methodology.
http://www.audiocheck.net/audiotests_frequencychecklow.php
I just reread this "Frequencies lower than 20 Hz are beyond our frequency hearing range: our low frequency response test - which starts as low as 10 Hz - should remain inaudible until it reaches 20 Hz. If you hear frequencies below 20 Hz, suspect this test to be corrupted by Harmonic Distortion generated from your speaker or subwoofer." Not really sure i understand the test then.Not sure how to distinguish what i should be hearing from distortion.
actually never mind. I did the test again. I don't actually hear anything until 20 hz.
Do you have a sub connected?
As for the most part a 5 or 6 inch woofer should be able to go at least 10 or 20 Hz below it's designers test ratings, though you're possibly really taxing the woofer.
The giant Axiom EP800 is rated down to 12Hz at +-3db. Although I am sure there is a 10Hz sub out there, it would be more like a weapon than a piece of audio equipment.
No sub. I will stick to testing the 2 pairs with music rather then test tones.
I will be sending the axioms back. After listening for a few weeks i prefer the peachtree. As i said before the axioms were great and would have been happy with them as well if I did not compare them side by side with the D5s.
I also ordered svs sb-1000 to see how it will sound in this setup. I tried blending my ep-500 with the speakers today, but there is no way i can fit the sub in the 2 places i have available in the room.... and even if i could that's the star of the show in my HT.